Photonic energy storage device

ABSTRACT

An energy storage capsule for storing energy in the form of photons. The body of the capsule may surround a sealed vacuum environment in which several layers of reactive material are contained, including an inner reflective coating, a first photovoltaic cell, an optical amplification medium, a second photovoltaic cell, and an outer reflective coating, provided in that order. The body of the capsule may also be reflective, for example polished aluminum. Light may be emitted from an LED wafer which may be integrated with the surface of the optical amplification medium, directed at the several layers of reactive material. Some photons may be reflected by the reflective material, storing them within the capsule, while others may be absorbed by the photovoltaic cells, powering the LEDs to transmit more photons. The thermal environment of the energy storage capsule may be maintained such that the LEDs can operate at over 100% efficiency.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/403,912, filed on May 6, 2019 which is priority from U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 16/112,980, filed on August 27, 2018, entitled“PHOTONIC ENERGY STORAGE DEVICE,” the entire contents of which arehereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

Cavity resonators are hollow closed conductors, such as metal boxes orcavities provided within metal enclosures, which may containelectromagnetic waves reflecting back and forth between the cavity'swalls. For devices referred to by the term “cavity resonators,” thesewaves are most often radio waves or microwaves. When a source of radiowaves or microwaves (or, in some instances, other forms ofelectromagnetic energy) that is at one of the cavity's resonantfrequencies is applied, the oppositely-moving waves form standing waves,and the cavity stores electromagnetic energy. Microwaves are often mostpractical for this purpose, because the cavity's lowest resonantfrequency is the frequency at which the width of the cavity is equal toa half-wavelength, meaning that cavities that make use oflonger-wavelength radio waves can often be oversized.

Cavity resonators also exist for other parts of the electromagneticspectrum. Optical resonators, also called optical cavities or resonatingcavities, are arrangements of highly reflective mirrors or reflectivematerial that form standing-wave cavity resonators for light waves, suchas IR waves, visible light waves, or UV waves. Optical resonators are amajor component of lasers, and may be disposed around the lasing mediumin order to provide feedback for the laser light. Light that is confinedin a resonator will reflect multiple times from the mirrors in a mannerthat tends to form stable patterns or frequencies. (Only certainpatterns or frequencies will typically be produced, with others beingsuppressed by destructive interference.)

The efficiency of a laser, or other resonator-based system, is describedby the gain coefficient, which specifically describes the ability of alaser medium to increase optical power. Certain losses may be associatedwith elements of the resonator system which can reduce the gain of thelaser or otherwise impair efficiency. Specifically, losses may beassociated with transmission of light at the resonator mirrors,absorption and scattering by the mirrors, absorption by the lasermedium, and diffraction losses at the mirrors. Each of these losses maycontribute, in some manner, to reduction of the overall gaincoefficient.

An important concept is the “round trip gain” of the resonator, whichmay determine whether the output power of the laser or other resonatordevice may increase, decrease, or remain constant, based on losses oramplifications that the light beam may have in a complete round tripthrough the laser. (When the round trip gain G is greater than 1, theoscillations in the resonator will grow, while when the round trip gainG is less than 1, the oscillations in the resonator will die out.) Asthe laser light completes this loop, from a mirror on one side of theresonator to a mirror on the other side of the resonator and back again,some of the light may be transmitted through each mirror and may exitthe cavity. (In lasers, this transmitted light may form the beam.) Roundtrip gain may be a ratio of the intensity of radiation at the end of theloop to the intensity of radiation at the beginning of the loop. Thisvalue may be determined by the volume losses in the laser or otherresonator, and by the losses in the form of useful output suppliedthrough the mirrors.

Specifically, round trip gain G may be provided as:

$G = {\frac{{Final}\mspace{14mu}{irradiance}}{{Initial}\mspace{14mu}{irradiance}} = {\frac{I_{0}*R_{1}*e^{{({k - \gamma})}L}*R_{2}*e^{{({k - \gamma})}L}}{I_{0}} = \frac{I_{0}R_{1}R_{2}e^{2{({k - \gamma})}L}}{I_{0}}}}$

with I₀ representing the initial irradiance value, R₁ representing thereflectivity of the first reflector, R₂ representing the reflectivity ofthe second reflector, and e(^(k-γ)L) representing the change in the beamirradiance each time the beam passes through the lasing medium. γ mayrepresent the effective volume loss coefficient, while k, or k_(th) ,may be the threshold gain coefficient, given as a function of the lengthof the lasing medium L, R₁ and R₂ , and γ.

$\left( {{Specifically},\;{k_{th} = {\gamma + {\frac{1}{2L}\ln{\frac{1}{R_{1}R_{2}}.}}}}} \right)$

SUMMARY

While cavity resonators have been used for storage of electromagneticenergy, the relatively high losses associated with optical resonatorsand optical resonator-like devices have largely prevented them frombeing employed for similar purposes. Some of the terms described above,such as the reflectances or the effective volume loss component γ, canoften represent a highly significant leakage of electromagnetic energy;for example, an effective volume loss component γ of 10% can mean thatthe beam in the resonator experiences 10% losses per round trip. Thepresent application sets forth various exemplary embodiments of aphotonic energy storage device which may improve on past opticalresonator designs to the point where it may be practical for energystorage or even, under some circumstances, energy generation.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a photonic energy storage devicemay be provided as a capsulized suspended vacuum environment made from areflective material, which may contain an array of photoelectric cells,as well as an array of photonic energy sources. These photonic energysources may be, for example, 790-910 nanometer infrared light emittingdiodes (LEDs), or any other LEDs or other sources, such as may bedesired. In an exemplary embodiment, the photoelectric cells used in thedesign may have a quantum efficiency at a particular wavelength band,such as 97% efficiency at 694.3 nm -700 nm, allowing for highlyefficient electrical power generation when absorbing light in thiswavelength band. In other exemplary embodiments, different materials ordifferent combinations of materials may be used as the reflectivematerial, as photoelectric cells, or as photonic energy sources, such asmay be desired.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the capsulized environment may beconstructed from a polished material that may be specifically shaped andatomically structured in order to provide for the most efficientreflectivity in a particular wavelength or over a particular wavelengthband. For example, in one exemplary embodiment, the capsulizedenvironment may be constructed from polished aluminum.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the photoelectric cells providedin the capsulized environment may be manufactured with multi-junctionlayers, which may contain crystalline structures that are most reactiveto the specific wavelength of photonic energy that is supplied by thelight-emitting diode, for example the 694.3 nm -700 nm wavelength bandor another wavelength band, such as may be desired. For example, in oneexemplary embodiment, the photoelectric cells provided in the capsulizedenvironment may be thin layer multi-junction gallium arsenide solarcells.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the capsulized environment, withphotoelectric cells and photodiodes included, may be suspended in avacuum environment. The photodiodes may be provided with circuitryconfigured to adjust the emitter output to the most efficient levels,given the conditions in the capsulized environment and outside of thecapsulized environment, in order to maximize outputs. The entireenclosure, including the capsulized environment and the vacuumsuspension enclosure, may be stored in a cooling system, which may beequipped with sensors in order to monitor a temperature state of theenclosure and maximize cooling efficiency based on the measured filteredinputs and outputs of the enclosure.

According to an exemplary embodiment, such a system may be used toprovide continuous power output over an extended period of time, and mayoperate silently while having high reusability. In certain embodiments,low-cost materials and/or reusable materials may be incorporated intothe design in order to minimize production costs or in order to allowfor recycling of components. The overall power supply may be verydurable, as compared to other reusable power source solutions such aslithium-ion polymer batteries (LiPo batteries) and can operateeffectively as energy storage in certain extreme applications such as inunmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Such a system may also be used to provide some level of power storageover a very long period of time without replacement. In one majoradvantage, the life expectancy of each of the parts may be far beyondthe typical life expectancy of batteries with similar operatingcharacteristics, such that the average life expectancy of a photonicenergy storage device may be an estimated 20 to 30 years. This may allowfor the photonic energy storage device to be used in a variety ofapplications where it is desired to have a system operate for anextended period of time without maintenance but where the system mayhave ready access to a power source in order to recharge stored energy,or where the system may be installed in an area having a favorabletemperature gradient that allows the LEDs to provide power generationthrough the temperature gradient alone. (For example, in some exemplaryembodiments, the system could be deployed on a satellite, in acommunications drone such as the GOOGLE SKYBENDER or any other droneintended to loiter in the air for an extended period of time, in adeep-sea application like a marker buoy, or in various otherapplications such as may be envisioned.)

Looking at an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage device,a photonic energy storage device may be focused around a photonic energystorage capsule. This capsule may include a capsule body, which maysurround a sealed vacuum environment and may have an internal wallincluding a set of at least five thin layers of reactive material on allor part of the internal portion of the capsule body. (In an exemplaryembodiment, these thin layers may be disposed within the capsule so thatall of the layers are arranged lengthwise, perpendicular to the lengthof the capsule, or in any other arrangement such as may be desired.)These five layers may include at least an inner reflective coatingprovided on an innermost part of the wall, then a first photovoltaiclayer, then an optical amplification layer, then a second photovoltaiclayer, then an outer reflective coating. (In some exemplary embodiments,this pattern may repeat all the way to the other side of the innermostpart of the wall.) The capsule may also have at least one LED waferwhich may be integrated with the optical amplification layer and may beused in order to provide photons in the photonic energy storage capsuleinternal environment, which may largely be reflected but may also beabsorbed by the photovoltaic layers, allowing for power to be siphonedfrom the capsule or used to generate more photons from the integratedLED wafer. This may be performed using an external control board, whichmay be placed within an enclosure placed around the capsule, and may beconnected to each of the electrical components.

In an exemplary embodiment, each of the thin layers of reactive materialmay have a thickness of 80 microns or less, or may have an averagethickness of 80 microns or less. The capsule body may be formed, inwhole or in part, from polished aluminum; the optical amplificationmedium may be ruby, emerald, or neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet(or any other material such as would be desired), the LEDs may emitphotons having a wavelength emission peak within the range of 694.3 nmto 700 nm, and the photovoltaic layer may have a high efficiency in thatrange (and may be, for example, at least one layer of multi-junctiongallium arsenide photovoltaic cells). Other variants may also bepossible in other exemplary embodiments.

In an exemplary embodiment, an enclosure may be placed around thecapsule in order to protect it from the external environment or housecomponents external to the capsule such as the control board. In anexemplary embodiment, the enclosure may include a cooling system, suchas a cooling fan, which may facilitate cooling of the capsule. Incertain exemplary embodiments, the enclosure may be square, rectangular,circular, polygonal, or any other shape such as may be desired, and mayhave one or more openings or open portions such as a slot for theaforementioned cooling system. In some exemplary embodiments, theenclosure, and the capsule, may be formed from multiple pieces, such astwo halves of an enclosure that meet at the halfway point. (In someexemplary embodiments, the two halves of the enclosure and the twohalves of the capsule may not be aligned; for example, the parting lineof the capsule may be disposed at an angle from the parting line of theenclosure. Alternatively, the capsule may be inserted into and securedin the enclosure in some other manner other than by assembling andsecuring the two at a parting line, such as by removing the end of theenclosure that is opposite the fan and inserting the capsule as a singlepiece.)

This device may generally be used in the following way. After activationof the device, the device may be provided with any necessary power, suchas by a power source or by one or more supercapacitors that may beelectrically connected with the device. It may then emit photons intothe internal environment of the capsule, which may be graduallyharvested as they pass through the reflective material. Electrical powerproduced by the absorption of the photons by the photovoltaic layers mayeither be siphoned off or used to generate additional photons.

The flow of electrons within the system may create heat within thecapsule. This heat may be dealt with in one or more of several differentways. First, in some exemplary embodiments, the vacuum inside thecapsule may be slightly compromised or may exist at a low level ofvacuum (which may, for example, be a “low vacuum,” somewhere in therange of 760 to 25 torr, or may be a higher level of vacuum that isstill imperfect). A small number of particles may remain in the vacuumenvironment, which may allow some level of convection to occur withinthe capsule, allowing heat to be conducted away from the surfaces of thecapsule (for example, from an area between the layers disposed in thecapsule). Second, because the components disposed within the capsule maybe coupled to the walls of the capsule, some level of conduction mayoccur over the coupling sites, allowing heat to be conducted through thecapsule and into the outer wall, where it may be removed by the coolingsystem as desired. Third, some level of heat may also be transmitted viaradiation, so that it reaches the outer surface of the capsule.

Once heat reaches the outer surface of the capsule, it may be removed bythe cooling system that is configured to cool the capsule. In anexemplary embodiment, the capsule may exist within an enclosure and airmay be conducted through this enclosure from one side of the enclosureto the other, over as much of the capsule surface as possible, in orderto remove heat from the enclosure and maintain the system at asteady-state temperature during normal operation. This cooling effectmay help reverse the effects of the heat transfer process from insidethe capsule to outside the capsule, and may assist in maintaining idealvacuum conditions within the capsule. (In an exemplary embodiment, theouter surface of the capsule may be provided with one or more heatsinks,over which the cooling system may blow air or which the cooling systemmay otherwise blow.)

In an exemplary embodiment, a fan provided in the outer wall of theenclosure may be a simple fan, similar to a CPU cooling fan or otheranalogous device which may typically be used to cool electricalcomponents. In another exemplary embodiment, the fan may be integratedwith the outer wall of the enclosure so as to have one or moreperformance enhancing structures based on the geometry of the enclosure.For example, in an exemplary embodiment, pieces may be fixed on eitherside of the fan, relative to the length of the enclosure, which may beused to induce air resistance in the input air. This may ensure that theair pressure within the enclosure is higher, as the fan structure may beconfigured to leverage calculated resistance to the air input andresistance to the air output to increase airflow, while also helping tofilter the input air. (The overall effect may be to create a sort of“capacitance” in the air conducted through the enclosure.) This mayallow a lower-powered fan to be integrated with the enclosure (improvingthe performance of the device, as power for the fan may be drawn fromthe device such as may be desired) by allowing the lower-powered fan tobe used to produce a fast air current capable of conducting asignificant quantity of heat away from the device.

In some exemplary embodiments, it may be desirable to provide the LEDwafers or other light sources that may be used in the design withthermal cooling materials integrated with the wafers or other sources.For example, according to an exemplary embodiment, the wafers may befitted with PCB materials, copper, aluminum, thermo-electric coolers(TECs), or other cooling components, which may exit the capsule withoutdisrupting the vacuum environment. In various exemplary embodiments, thefan or other cooling system may cool the portions of these coolingcomponents that exit the capsule to atmospheric temperature or to atemperature below atmospheric temperature, in a manner that focuses thecooling effect of the system on these individual components and does notdisrupt the optimum operating temperature of the other componentsinvolved in the system.

Various alternative implementations of the system, other than in acapsule design provided in an enclosure such as is shown in several ofthe figures, may be disclosed. For example, according to an exemplaryembodiment, it may be desired to implement the system as a “power sheet”for a cellular phone or other portable device, capable of retaining somelevel of power while having a very low profile. This may allow forextremely thin devices that may retain some level of power when removedfrom a charging dock, in a manner that allows them to display some levelof image or video content. Some example implementations include smart IDbadges or smart tickets (which may operate in a low-power state most ofthe time and may only be briefly activated), communications devices,gaming devices, and any other low-profile electronic devices such as maybe desired. Such a design may also be used to provide a display screenon a thin component such as a door or lid, which may be occasionallyopened (breaking a charging circuit) but which will remain closed(leaving a charging circuit in place) most of the time. Otherimplementations may also be contemplated for a “power sheet” that may beprovided along with another power source such as an electrical plug or abattery; for example, in an exemplary embodiment, a “power sheet” may beprovided in immediate connection with a display in order to ensure thatpower is immediately available to the entire screen of a display, whichmay have advantages for increasing display response time. For example,in one exemplary embodiment, a cell phone may have various “powersheets” or “power layers” which may be provided along with a batteryand/or a supercapacitor, with these “power sheets” being provided on theback of the cell phone body and routed to the internal battery orsupercapacitor inside the phone. (In various embodiments, such sheetsmay be used in a variety of basic low-powered electronics, from small“smart devices” up to televisions.)

An exemplary embodiment of a system may also be used to provide power toanother device, such as a device that draws a significant amount ofpower such as an electric car. It may be noted that one of the majorobstacles to the use of electric cars has been the gradual degradationof the electric car battery, leading to “capacity fade” over time. Whilemany batteries currently in use can limit this to some extent (forexample, the TESLA MODEL S reportedly has around 5% battery degradationover its first 50,000 or so miles) alternative solutions may stillexist, particularly if it is desired to reuse batteries even after theyare removed from the electric vehicle. (For example, it may becontemplated that charging stations may exist whereby a depleted batterymay be swapped for a charged battery in order to allow electric vehiclesto complete long road trips. In these cases, batteries may be rapidlyswapped and depleted, and significant battery degradation may be noted.)As such, an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage system maybe used in order to reduce the effective battery degradation caused bythe vehicle.

For example, according to an exemplary embodiment, a photonic energystorage system for a vehicle or other large power consumer may have aclear cylindrical vacuum chamber with a number of layered corescorresponding to the layers provided in the capsule design or in otherexemplary embodiments. (In some exemplary embodiments, layers may be ofany thickness, such that hundreds or even thousands of layers may becontemplated to be present. For example, in an exemplary embodiment, areflective coating may be atomically structured in order to reflect mostof the utilized monochromatic light of the pump sources over theapplicable bandgap, which may reflect light into a slightly thickerhigh-absorption-efficiency photovoltaic cell. A lasing medium may alsobe provided, which may in some exemplary embodiments have an LED waferintegrated into the lasing medium layers, such that the wafer can flashat a frequency in order of a particular algorithmic sequence that may bepredetermined to assist in maintaining thermal equilibrium and utilizingthe lasing medium's luminescence properties. This lasing medium may be,for example, any medium such as ruby or any crystalline structurecapable of solid state optical amplification and capable of inducingstimulated emission, and may be provided in thin layers that may have athickness similar to that of the high-absorption-efficiency photovoltaiccell layers.) In the center of the layered cores may be provided a hole,which may function as a storage location for a supercapacitor. Thissupercapacitor may be used for routing the harvested energy from thelayers for storage, such as may be desired. (Various other uses may becontemplated for such a system, other than as a quickly and easilyreplaceable component of an electric car. For example, it may be used inany other vehicle, such as a vehicle used in a shop or productionenvironment like a forklift, that may be in close connection withcharging stations but may rapidly undergo battery cycling in normaluse.)

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Advantages of embodiments of the present invention will be apparent fromthe following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments thereof,which description should be considered in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings in which like numerals indicate like elements, inwhich:

FIG. 1 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage devicehalf.

FIG. 2A is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage devicehalf, shown from a top view.

FIG. 2B is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage devicehalf, shown from a top view, and showing a pathway of air that may bedrawn by the cooling system.

FIG. 3 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage device,shown from an end view.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage device,shown from an alternative end view.

FIG. 5 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage devicehalf, shown from a top view.

FIG. 6 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage devicecapsule layer arrangement.

FIG. 7 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage devicecapsule layer arrangement.

FIG. 8 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage deviceprovided together with a capsule layer arrangement.

FIG. 9 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage deviceprovided together with a capsule layer arrangement.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart describing an exemplary embodiment of a methodfor using a photonic energy storage device.

FIG. 11 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage deviceconfigured as a “power sheet.”

FIG. 12 is an exemplary embodiment of a photonic energy storage deviceconfigured as an energy storage device for a vehicle or other largepower consumer.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the invention are disclosed in the following description andrelated drawings directed to specific embodiments of the invention.Alternate embodiments may be devised without departing from the spiritor the scope of the invention. Additionally, well-known elements ofexemplary embodiments of the invention will not be described in detailor will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of theinvention. Further, to facilitate an understanding of the descriptiondiscussion of several terms used herein follows.

As used herein, the word “exemplary” means “serving as an example,instance or illustration.” The embodiments described herein are notlimiting, but rather are exemplary only. It should be understood thatthe described embodiments are not necessarily to be construed aspreferred or advantageous over other embodiments. Moreover, the terms“embodiments of the invention”, “embodiments” or “invention” do notrequire that all embodiments of the invention include the discussedfeature, advantage or mode of operation.

Further, as provided herein, certain features in the drawings may beillustrated in sizes that are conducive to allowing their depiction. Forexample, in many exemplary embodiments, features such as a reflectivelayer or reflective coating of a photovoltaic storage device may beextremely thin or even atomically thin. However, in many cases, thesefeatures have been illustrated, in the Figures, as being substantiallythicker than they may be contemplated to be in practice, so that theirarrangement can be clearly understood from the Figures. It is notedthat, to the extent such features (like the reflective layer) aredepicted in overly large sizes in the Figures, these elements of theFigures are not to scale. (Likewise, in many embodiments, more layersmay be present than are depicted in the Figures.)

According to an exemplary embodiment, and referring generally to theFigures, various exemplary implementations of a photonic energy storagedevice may be disclosed. According to an exemplary embodiment, aphotonic energy storage device may function by utilizing efficienciesnot generally associated with solar or photovoltaic cells by making eachlayer of the internal crystalline structure of the photonic energystorage device capsule be specific to the single range of light wavesthat are produced by the emitters. Likewise, it may be contemplatedthat, in some exemplary embodiments, efficiency may be improved byincluding similarly-reactive lattice structures in a single component,in order to ensure that all or almost all photons that are directedtowards the photovoltaic cell are captured. The photonic energy storagedevice environment may be arranged to have these lattice structuresarranged on opposite portions of the capsule, on at least the front andback end, so that light is reflected from the rest of the capsule ontothe lattice structures.

In an exemplary embodiment, each of the photovoltaic cells may be backedby a reflective surface, which may allow for recycling of photons in thesolar cells that would otherwise be lost. (It may, for example, becontemplated that, even when a number of photovoltaic cells are used inthe lattice structures, some photons may still pass through all of thephotovoltaic cells in the lattice structures without being absorbed intoany one of the photovoltaic cells. The reflective surface provided as abacking portion to the photovoltaic cells may ensure that most of thephotons that would otherwise be lost may be redirected back into thephotovoltaic cell lattice structure by the reflective material, and (ifstill not absorbed) are redirected back into the capsule, at which pointthere may be another opportunity for them to be absorbed by anotherphotovoltaic structure in another part of the capsule.

In an exemplary embodiment, the photovoltaic cells may be provided,together with the reflective material, in a layered design alsoincluding an optical amplifier. Specifically, according to an exemplaryembodiment, the design may include a first layer of reflective material,a first photovoltaic layer, an optical amplification medium, a secondphotovoltaic layer, and a second layer of reflective material. In anexemplary embodiment, each of these layers may be approximately 80microns in thickness, though each layer may be thicker or thinner ifdesired. (Individual layers or individual types of layers may each vary.For example, in some exemplary embodiments, it may be desired to have afirst photovoltaic layer that is thicker than the second photovoltaiclayer, or vice-versa, if desired.) In an exemplary embodiment, anoptical amplification medium may be, for example, ruby, or anotheroptical amplification medium capable of inducing stimulated emission.(Other optical amplification mediums may include, for example, emerald,neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:Y3A15O12 or “NdYAG”), or anyother such optical amplification media such as may be desired.) In anexemplary embodiment, the use of a central optical amplification layermay be used to provide an environment conducive to stimulated emission,such that light reaching the optical amplification layer may propagatethrough the optical amplification layer, and such that, because of themedium's light-radiating and luminescence properties, the light may beevenly distributed from the pump source (such as LEDs or some otherlight source such as may be desired) across the surface area of thesecond set of photovoltaic cells. This may ensure that light is properlydirected into the photovoltaic cells and that the intensity isapproximately uniform across the second layer of photovoltaic cells, andmay also ensure that light that is reflected off of the secondreflective layer and past the second layer of photovoltaic cells to thefirst layer of photovoltaic cells is likewise evenly distributed. Thismay also create a cascading effect of amplification through secondaryemission and stimulated emission.

In an exemplary embodiment, the capsule of the photonic energy storagedevice may be provided in a vacuum environment, which may be provided inand around the reflective material. This may isolate the components ofthe capsule from the conduction and convection of heat, ensuring a moregenerally favorable temperature distribution exists within the capsule.The vacuum environment may also ensure that light is able to travel atits maximum speed within the capsule, with the light being unhindered bymolecular interference in the air or other gas that might otherwise beprovided in the capsule; this likewise reduces or eliminates asignificant source of excess heating. The use of a vacuum environment toprevent interference also improves the usability of light emitters thatemit photons having a lower wavelength magnitude, ensuring that thesephotons better contribute to electron displacement within thecrystalline lattices of the photovoltaic cells. (As discussed, in someexemplary embodiments, a vacuum may be any level of vacuum, such as alow vacuum, which may ensure that photons are relatively unobstructedwhile still allowing some level of convection to remove heat from thecapsule.)

According to an exemplary embodiment, the light emitters may be anylight emitter such as traditional lasers or LEDs. In another exemplaryembodiment, the design may make use of integrated LED wafers, which maybe directly grown using a direct crystalline adhesion method so as toprovide the LEDs directly on the surface of the medium. For example, inan exemplary embodiment, a process such as epitaxial growth may be usedin order to directly grow the LED crystals on the inner surface of thecapsule, or on a wafer that may form a portion of the inner surface ofthe capsule, such as may be desired. (Epitaxial film growth is a processwhereby one or more crystalline overlayers may be deposited onto acrystalline substrate by using the substrate as a seed crystal. Theoverlayer(s) may be called the “epitaxial film,” and may be provided ina given orientation based on the configuration of the substrate crystal,which may lock the deposited film into one or more crystallographicorientations. Epitaxial film growth may be commonly used for productionof LEDs and various types of epitaxial growth may be employed underdifferent circumstances, as would be understood by a person of ordinaryskill in the art.) In an exemplary embodiment, the integrated LED wafersmay be distributed in the interior of the capsule based on the size ofthe lasing medium and the crystalline lattice structure, which mayensure that the pump sources are as efficiently used as possible.

According to one exemplary embodiment, it may be contemplated tointegrate some or all of the other components with the integrated LEDwafers, such that, in some exemplary embodiments, the components may allbe provided on the integrated LED wafers. For example, according to anexemplary embodiment, an integrated LED wafer may be a structure (suchas a rectangular structure with flat faces, which may in some exemplaryembodiments be formed from any of a variety of materials) upon which thephotovoltaic cells may first be attached or grown. (For example,according to an exemplary embodiment, a wafer may be a 500 mm by 300 mmby 3-5 mm structure, upon which, on the larger faces, photovoltaic cellsmay be attached or grown, using processes similar to the epitaxialgrowth process that may be used in order to provide the LEDs on thesurface of the structure.) These wafers may be integrated with ordisposed inside the capsule such that the reactive sides of thephotovoltaic cells face the two larger polished faces of the capsule.The backing of each of the photovoltaic cells may be coated with areflective coating, for example a dielectric or another type ofreflective coating, such as may be desired, which may in some exemplaryembodiments be specific to the wavelength of the light that is intendedto be trapped in the lasing medium (such as the ruby or the NdYAGmedium). The light that is not absorbed by the photovoltaic cells maythus be redirected into the lasing medium for amplification and reusewithin the process of stimulated emission.

According to an exemplary embodiment where the photovoltaic cells areprovided, along with the optical amplification medium, as part of amulti-layered design, an arbitrary number of layers may be provided,such as may be desired. For example, two or more than two photoelectriclayers may be provided, two or more than two reflective layers may beprovided, and one or more than one optical amplification medium layermay be provided. In some exemplary embodiments, the overall pattern ofstructures such as may be used in a first exemplaryembodiment—reflective coating, photovoltaic cells, lasing opticalamplification medium, photovoltaic cells, reflective coating—may berepeated one or more times in order to provide a multi-layered design.(This may, in some exemplary embodiments, require only severalmillimeters of additional thickness.) Alternatively, in some exemplaryembodiments, the layers may be placed out of order, or only a subset oflayers may be repeated; for example, it may be contemplated to have amulti-layer design in which the layers are disposed in this order:reflecting medium, photovoltaic cells, optical amplification medium,reflecting medium, photovoltaic cells, optical amplification medium,reflecting medium (with the reflecting medium being used to reflectphotons back through the optical amplification medium and into thephotovoltaic cells). Other variants may also be contemplated and may beused as desired.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the storage functionality of oneexemplary embodiment the device may be explained as follows. (It isnoted that, in other exemplary embodiments, different components ordifferent arrangements of components may be understood.) Photovoltaiccells may be used having a quantum efficiency of 97% at a givenwavelength band, in particular 694.3 nm -700 nm. The photonic energystorage device may further be provided with one or more LEDs having aradiant intensity of 2900 mW. In the exemplary embodiment, this LED mayrun at 3.3 V and 350 mA, requiring 1.155 W of power. It may therefore beunderstood that, at certain conditions, the radiant intensity producedby the 694.3 nm-700 nm LED may exceed the wattage required to run itwhen pulsed at certain frequencies. (Under these conditions, theremainder of the emitted power may be drawn from heat provided across afavorable temperature gradient, similar to the function of athermocouple.)

When the LED contemplated in the present design is directed directly ata photovoltaic cell, the cell may produce 0.7 W of power. However, whenthe LED is installed within the capsule of the photonic energy storagedevice, essentially all light produced by the LED may be directed towardthe photovoltaic cell, producing 2.15 W of power. As presently arranged,the device may produce excess power of approximately 0.995 W undertypical initial conditions (based on the use of heat provided across afavorable temperature gradient as described above), which may degradeover time as the photonic energy storage device heats up and experiencessome losses due to electronic resistance. (However, even continuouslong-term operation of the device may produce an excess of 0.5 W, solong as the thermal conditions to which the device is subject remainsimilar.)

According to other exemplary embodiments, various other arrangements ofan LED, housing, and photoelectric cell may be contemplated. Forexample, it may be noted that, in previous studies, LEDs may be madeover 200% efficient (based on the amount of optical power that theyproduced and the electrical power required to produce this opticalpower) so long as the input wattage is lowered to a sufficiently lowvalue, and so long as the LED only produces a small amount of lightenergy such that atmospheric cooling keeps it efficient. As such, in anexemplary embodiment, a photonic energy storage device may be operatedat a lower power level in order to take advantage of higherefficiencies, allowing the LEDs to operate at a 200% or greaterefficiency value while allowing atmospheric cooling to maintain thefavorable temperature gradient that allows for the continued operationof the LEDs at 200% or greater efficiency.

In various exemplary embodiments, it may be noted that the thermalequilibrium of the LED wafers with the lasing medium and environmentalair placed into the lasing medium may determine the operatingtemperatures and frequencies at which the overall photonic energystorage device may be run. This may allow the efficiency values inexcess of >100% to be reached. Under other circumstances, it may also becontemplated to have different surroundings other than air, which may beplaced into contact with the lasing medium in order to maintain thephotonic energy storage device at a desirable equilibrium temperature.(For example, an exemplary embodiment of the design may be immersed inwater in order to maintain the capsule at a desired operatingtemperature.) It may also be contemplated to make use of one or moreintervening media, other than environmental air or water, in order tomaintain the capsule at a desired operating temperature; for example, inan exemplary embodiment, it may be desirable to conduct heat rapidlyaway from the surface of the capsule, and as such the capsule may beimmersed in a thermally conductive fluid such as a silicone heattransfer fluid which may then be cooled by air.

It is likewise noted that, in some exemplary embodiments, different LEDfrequencies or different LED flash times may be used when the LEDs areoperating at certain wattages or wavelengths. The frequency with which agiven LED may be pulsed, or the flash time over which an LED mayactually emit light over a pulsing process, may be adjusted specificallyfor a given LED or LED chip, allowing for losses to be minimized andnon-beneficial heat levels to be reduced as much as possible. In someexemplary embodiments, it may be contemplated to use an array of two ormore LEDs that may pulse at different frequencies (or the samefrequencies), or may be contemplated to use an array of two or more LEDsthat may pulse using different flash times (or the same flash times).Other variants may also be contemplated; for example, in some exemplaryembodiments, it may be desirable to use an LED that operates over onepart of a wavelength band absorbed by a photovoltaic cell as one part ofan array, and another LED that operates over another part of awavelength band absorbed by a photovoltaic cell as another part of anarray, such that the LED array is producing photons having two or morewavelengths that may each be absorbed by the photovoltaic cells. (Forexample, in an exemplary embodiment, a first LED may be used with a peakclose to 694.3 nm, and a second LED may be used with a peak close to 700nm, each of which may be absorbed by a photovoltaic cell capable ofabsorbing light within this band.) In another exemplary embodiment, itmay be desirable to use a photovoltaic cell that can absorb light inmultiple wavelength bands; in such an exemplary embodiment, LEDs in anLED array may be selected such that a first LED is provided having apeak in a first wavelength band and such that a second LED is providedhaving a peak in a second wavelength band (with the option forsuccessive LEDs and successive wavelength bands continuing after thesecond, if desired).

In an exemplary embodiment, the overall case design may include, outsideof the capsule, a control board, such as a thin integrated circuit boardwhich may be utilized in various configurations in order to controlelectrical variables that may be used in order to harvest energy. (Asnoted, the capsule may contain a vacuum environment, and all electricalcircuitry such as the control board may be housed externally, in orderto ensure that internal heat generation in the capsule is isolated inorder to enhance electrical generation through the Peltier effect.) Forexample, the control board may be used in order to route excess energyfrom the capsule (in circumstances in which the capsule is able toproduce excess energy from the temperature gradient to which it issubject) to a connected energy storage device, such as a connected bankof supercapacitors which may be used to support on and off functions ofthe device. (Alternatively, other energy storage devices may be used;for example, it may be contemplated to have a bank of photonic energystorage devices which may turn on one or more members of the bank basedon the power supplied or demanded.) This may increase the lifespan ofthe device's parts, and may also allow for increased power consumptionto be accommodated in the event that there is a sudden spike in powerdemand.

In various exemplary embodiments, various sizes of the photonic energystorage device may be contemplated. For example, according to anexemplary embodiment, it may be contemplated that a small bank ofphotonic energy storage devices may be employed in a cellular phone orother portable device, or that a larger bank of photonic energy storagedevices may be employed in a larger electronic device such as atelevision. Various other sizes of a photonic energy storage device maybe contemplated to exist, including even larger devices, if desired. (Itmay be contemplated that, according to existing manufacturingtechniques, it may be increasingly difficult to create larger-diameterflat sheets of laser optical amplification medium, such as flat sheetsof ruby. For example, while larger sheets exist and can be manufactured,existing producers may make use of a typical size of around 8 to 9inches in diameter. In such exemplary embodiments, these sheets may becut and fused, such as may be desired. Other techniques than those whichmay be in common use for laser optical amplification mediummanufacturing may be capable of producing larger sheets, often atincreased expense, and in some exemplary embodiments these techniquesmay be used instead. It may also be contemplated to arrange multiplephotonic energy storage devices in parallel to one another in order toensure that no one device relies on sheets that are unworkably large,such as may be desired.)

In some exemplary embodiments, it may be contemplated to use a photonicenergy storage device in order to supply operational power to anelectronic device; however, it may also be contemplated to use aphotonic energy storage device in order to supply power to individualcomponents of a device, or in order to manage a level of power that maybe supplied to a device or an individual component of a device. Forexample, in some exemplary embodiments, a photonic energy storage devicemay be used in place of a capacitor circuit as a device for smoothingripple or voltage variations that may be supplied by a given powersource.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 1, FIG. 1 displays an exemplary embodimentof one half of a photonic energy storage device enclosure 100, which mayillustrate the various components of the photonic energy storage device.According to an exemplary embodiment, the photonic energy storage deviceenclosure 100 may have an outer enclosure 102 and an inner capsule 202suspended within the outer enclosure 102, which may be, for example,with a structural support 110 provided on the inner wall of the outerenclosure 102 and linking the outer enclosure 102 to the capsule 202.

According to an exemplary embodiment, an outer enclosure 102 may bejoined with one or more other outer enclosure components (such asanother outer enclosure 102, the two halves the photonic energy storagedevice. According to an exemplary embodiment, the photonic energystorage device enclosure 100 may have an outer enclosure 102 and aninner capsule 202 suspended within the outer enclosure 102, which maybe, for example, with a structural support 110 provided on the innerwall of the outer enclosure 102 and linking the outer enclosure 102 tothe capsule 202.

According to an exemplary embodiment, an outer enclosure 102 may bejoined with one or more other outer enclosure components (such asanother outer enclosure 102, the two halves together forming a whole).According to an exemplary embodiment, the outer enclosure 102 may beseparated at a midpoint of the left and right outer enclosure walls 104,which may be joined by the bottom outer enclosure wall 106. (Accordingto an exemplary embodiment, the inner capsule 202 may be connected tothe bottom outer enclosure wall 106; alternatively, the structuralsupport may be provided along the left or right outer enclosure wall104, and may bend in an L-shape in order to connect to the underside ofthe capsule 202, which may serve to better thermally isolate the capsule202 from its surrounding environment by isolating the capsule 202 fromthermally conductive material such as the walls of the outer enclosure202.)

According to an exemplary embodiment, an outer enclosure 102 may bedesigned to use atmospheric cooling or another form of gas cooling inorder to maintain the capsule 202 at a desirable temperature in order toenable the LEDs of the capsule to better make use of the Peltier effectin order to achieve high efficiency values. In an exemplary embodiment,the outer enclosure 102 may include an atmospheric cooling or other gascooling system, such as a slot for a fan to be disposed or other coolingsystem slot 108. In another exemplary embodiment, another cooling systemmay be used, such as a liquid cooling system, and as such a fan slot 108may not exist or may be substituted for a slot or space for another typeof cooling apparatus such as a pump for the liquid cooling system.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a fan slot 108 may be providedsuch that it has multiple pieces, or spaces of multiple pieces, oneither side, which may act to induce air resistance and build airpressure in the internal part of the enclosure. (These pieces may alsowork to filter the input air, such as may be desired, ensuring thatdebris is not introduced into the enclosure.) This may allowlower-powered fans provided in the fan slot 108 to produce faster aircurrents by leveraging calculated resistance to the air input andresistance to the air output in order to increase the airflow that maybe possible with a low-power fan. This may ensure that less power isdrawn from the overall system in order to operate the fan provided inthe fan or cooling system slot 108, increasing the efficiency of theoverall system.

Looking next at the capsule 202, according to an exemplary embodiment, acapsule 202 may have an insulated design, with an outer wall 204, anintermediate gas or vacuum-filled portion 206, and an inner wall 208,which may (in use) feature the LEDs and photovoltaic panels used tostore and/or generate power as contemplated in the above disclosure.According to an exemplary embodiment, a capsule 202 may have wafersfeaturing LEDs and photovoltaic panels featured at various points aroundthe capsule 202, such as at the marked sites 210, 212, or elsewhere. Inan exemplary embodiment, one or more of the LEDs may be disposed suchthat the LED spans the intermediate gas or vacuum-filled portion 206,allowing heat to be conducted through the LED to the externalsurroundings, such that a heat gradient is established. This may allowthe LED to operate at a higher efficiency, as discussed previously, dueessentially to the Peltier effect. (In an exemplary embodiment, aheatsink may be provided on the outside end of the LED in such a manneras to allow air to be conducted over the heatsink by the cooling system,in order to ensure that the LED wafer may be maintained at a desirabletemperature.)

According to an exemplary embodiment, a capsule 202 may be significantlylonger than it is wide, having a spherocylindrical shape with acylindrical portion 214 and two hemispherical ends 216. According to anexemplary embodiment, any other shape may be used, if desired, such as asphere shape or a conical cylinder shape. Likewise, the chamber that isdefined in the outer enclosure 102 for the capsule 202 may be any shape;for example, in an exemplary embodiment, the chamber may be cylindricaland only one chamber wall 104, 106 may exist, which may form ahalf-cylinder and may be fused with another half-cylinder of anotherphotonic energy storage device half-enclosure 100.

In some exemplary embodiments, the halves of a photonic energy storagedevice may not be equal in size or shape, or may otherwise not part at aparting line disposed at a halfway point on the photonic energy storagedevice. For example, according to an exemplary embodiment, a capsule 202may be separable in a lengthwise direction rather than in a widthwisedirection, such that the capsule may be fused around the perimeter ofthe cylinder 214 or the perimeter of one of the hemispherical ends 216.Likewise, it may be contemplated to have the capsule 202 be separatelyinsertable into and connectable to the outer enclosure 102, rather thanbeing fixedly coupled to the outer enclosure 102. Other components ofthe outer enclosure 102, such as a fan slot 108 or other cooling deviceretaining structure, may likewise be separate pieces, and in anexemplary embodiment the outer enclosure may be designed to separatelongitudinally instead of transversely (as shown in FIG. 1).

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 2A, FIG. 2A may show an alternate view ofa photonic energy storage device half-enclosure 100 such as is shown inFIG. 1. Specifically, a top view may be shown. According to an exemplaryembodiment, a capsule 202 may be shown as suspended by structuralsupports 110 which may be provided at various points along the capsule202. For example, in an exemplary embodiment, a capsule 202 may beprovided with a front and back support 110. Alternatively, if desired, asupport 110 may be continuous, spanning from a front position to a backposition along some portion of the capsule 202.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 2B, FIG. 2B may show an alternate view ofa photonic energy storage device half-enclosure 100 which may in thiscase feature heatsinks 220. According to an exemplary embodiment, theLED wafers that may in this case be provided as light sources in themarked sites 210 (or any other light sources that may be desired) may beprovided with thermal cooling materials, such as by conductive printedcircuit boards (PCBs) coupled to the wafers, by copper or aluminumcooling components, by thermo-electric coolers (TECs), or by any othercooling material such as may be desired. This may allow heat to beremoved from the capsule 202 without disrupting the internal environmentof the capsule 202 or causing other components within the capsule 202 todiverge from their optimum operating temperatures. The fan or coolingsystem that may be provided in the fan slot 108 or elsewhere may thencool the capsule (including, specifically, the heat sinks connected tothe LEDs or other light sources), for example by blowing outside air 230on a path through the outer enclosure 102 such that it exits through theother end of the outer enclosure 102.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 3, FIG. 3 may show an end view of anassembled photonic energy storage device, assembled from two photonicenergy storage device half-enclosures 100. According to an exemplaryembodiment, a capsule 202 may be suspended in the center portion of thephotonic energy storage device, with each side of the capsule 202 beingsuspended by structural supports 110 provided on one of the photonicenergy storage device half-enclosures 100. (According to an exemplaryembodiment, each of the structural supports 110 may have an L-shape,such that, if the photonic energy storage device half-enclosures 100 areproduced so as to be identical in shape, one of the photonic energystorage device half-enclosures 100 may be rotated 180 degrees from theother photonic energy storage device half-enclosure 100 such that one ofthe L-shapes is provided on one side of the photonic energy storagedevice and the other L-shape is provided on the other side of thephotonic energy storage device, suspending the capsule 202 in thecenter.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 4, FIG. 4 may show the opposite end viewof an assembled photonic energy storage device, assembled from twophotonic energy storage device half-enclosures 100. According to anexemplary embodiment, a fan slot 108 or other cooling device slot may beprovided on one end of the photonic energy storage device, such that air(or another fluid) may be provided through the outer enclosure 102 andaround the capsule. According to another exemplary embodiment, one ormore fan slots 108 or other cooling systems may be provided elsewhere onthe outer enclosure 102, if desired; for example, in an exemplaryembodiment, a plurality of fan slots 108 may be provided on the end ofthe outer enclosure 102, while in another exemplary embodiment aplurality of fan slots 108 may be provided in a transverse directionfrom the capsule instead of in a longitudinal direction. As noted,according to an exemplary embodiment, a constriction or other geometricfeature may be provided after the fan slot 108 in order to increase theair pressure that may be provided by the fan, allowing a lower-power fanto be used in order to conduct air at a particular velocity.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 5, FIG. 5 may show an exemplary embodimentof one half of a photonic energy storage device enclosure 100, as shownfrom the back. In an exemplary embodiment, the back side of the photonicenergy storage device enclosure half 100 may be a smooth panel withoutexterior features. Alternatively, the walls 104, 106 of the outerenclosure 102 may have any features that may be desired, such asadditional fan slots 108 or cooling fins, such as may be desired. Therelative dispositions of the capsule 202 and the fan slot 108 may beshown in dotted lines in FIG. 5.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 6, FIG. 6 may show an exemplary embodimentof a photonic energy storage device capsule layer arrangement 300.According to an exemplary embodiment, a flat sheet LED wafer may beprovided with reflective material 302 on each outside face, and aphotovoltaic panel 304 may be provided inwards from each set ofreflective material 302. In the center may be a laser opticalamplification medium 306, such as ruby or another such medium as may bedesired.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 7, FIG. 7 may show an exemplary embodimentof a photonic energy storage device capsule layer arrangement 300, inthis case showing the production and absorption of photons within thephotonic energy storage device capsule layer arrangement 300. Accordingto an exemplary embodiment, just as in FIG. 6, a flat sheet LED wafermay be provided with reflective material 302 on each outside face, and aphotovoltaic panel 304 may be provided inwards from each set ofreflective material 302. In the center may be a laser opticalamplification medium 306, such as ruby or another such medium as may bedesired, into which the flat sheet LED wafer may be disposed. Accordingto an exemplary embodiment, the flat sheet LED wafer disposed in thelaser optical amplification medium 306 may produce a number of photons402, which may generally be directed at the photovoltaic panels 304.Some of the photons 402 may pass into and be absorbed by thephotovoltaic panels 304, while other photons 402 may pass through thephotovoltaic panels 304, at which point they may be reflected 404. Insome cases, photons 404 may be absorbed by the photovoltaic panels 304after being reflected; alternatively, they may be directed back into theoptical amplification layer 306 after passing through the photovoltaicpanels 304 again. These photons 406 may then be conducted within theoptical amplification layer and may pass into another photovoltaic panel304, such as may be desired.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 8, FIG. 8 may show an exemplary embodimentof a photonic energy storage device half-enclosure 100 provided togetherwith a capsule layer arrangement such as is shown in FIG. 6. Accordingto an exemplary embodiment, the capsule 202 may have the capsule layerarrangement formed throughout the extent of the capsule 202, such thatthe overall capsule 202 has many different layers in different arrays.(In some exemplary embodiments, the exact disposition of the differentlayers or arrays may depend on the application in which the capsule isto be employed.) In an exemplary embodiment, the capsule layerarrangement may be provided with layers disposed from one end to theother end of the capsule 202. A pattern may be formed in the layers suchthat an optical amplification layer 306 is sandwiched in between twophotovoltaic layers 304, which in turn are sandwiched between tworeflective layers 302. In other exemplary embodiments, other variationsmay be contemplated; for example, it may in some circumstances bepreferable to have only one photovoltaic layer 304 per opticalamplification layer 302, and as such this may be disposed on one side ofthe optical amplification layer 302, such as may be desired.

In some exemplary embodiments, wherein the layers are disposed in acapsule 202 from one end to the other end, the capsule 202 may have avariety of shapes, and may, for example, not be capsule-shaped. Forexample, according to an exemplary embodiment, a capsule 202 may havespherical ends, but in another exemplary embodiment a capsule 202 mayhave conical ends, flat ends, or any other shape such as may be desired.It may also be contemplated to have a capsule 202 that does not have astraight cylindrical body between the ends, if desired; for example, itmay be desired to have an uneven surface with cooling fins or other suchstructures protruding from the surface in order to enhance the effect ofconvection and thereby enhance the effect of the cooling system.

In an exemplary embodiment, the heat sinks 220 that are coupled to theLEDs and which pass through the vacuum barrier of the capsule 202 mayhave any shape or size. In some exemplary embodiments, the heat sinks220 may be provided as single pieces, such that a single heat sinkserves a large number of LEDs and extends over a significant length ofthe capsule. In some other exemplary embodiments, heat sinks 220 mayeach be a single piece connected to just one LED wafer. In otherexemplary embodiments, a mix of the two may be used. The LEDs may beconnected to the heat sinks 220 in such a manner as to allow the LEDs toreadily pump the optical amplification medium 306.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 9, FIG. 9 may show an exemplary embodimentof a photonic energy storage device half-enclosure 100 provided togetherwith a capsule layer arrangement such as is shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7,in this case showing the photons that may be provided within thephotonic energy storage device 100. According to an exemplaryembodiment, the capsule 202 may have the capsule layer arrangementformed anywhere within it, or at a specific point within the capsule 202such as the center of the capsule 202. Light may be emitted from LEDwafers integrated with the optical amplification medium 306.(Alternatively, in some exemplary embodiments, light may be emitted fromelsewhere in the capsule 202, such as from light sources such as LEDsconfigured to direct light into the optical amplification medium 306 butwhich are not fully integrated with it.) In such an exemplaryembodiment, when photons 402 are emitted and directed at thephotovoltaic panels 304, some of the photons 402 may pass through thephotovoltaic panels 304 and be reflected by the reflective layer 302,which may cause the reflected photons 404 to be directed back in thedirection of the photovoltaic panels 304.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 10, FIG. 10 may show an exemplaryflowchart describing an exemplary embodiment of a method for using aphotonic energy storage device 1000. According to an exemplaryembodiment, in a first step, a user may activate the device, after thedevice has been provided with an initial charge in order to allow thedevice to store photons within the capsule environment 1002. (Forexample, in an exemplary embodiment, a user may fully charge the devicewith the expectation of losses over time, or may partially charge thedevice in a circumstance where the thermal environment in which thedevice is placed can be expected to provide partial charging.) In a nextstep, photons may be emitted into the capsule internal environment by apump source, such as LEDs, which may allow those photons to be reflectedor absorbed as appropriate 1004. In some exemplary embodiments, thispump source or these pump sources may be provided directly within anoptical amplification layer, which may ensure that when the photons areemitted, they are emitted directly into a photovoltaic layer 1006,allowing for immediate harvesting of the photons; in exemplaryembodiments where the LEDs are operating at a higher than 100%efficiency due to the thermal environment in which they exist, this maycause the photovoltaics to yield net production of power. In otherexemplary embodiments, photons may be emitted into the capsule such thatthey eventually reach a reflective layer. Once the photons reach thereflective layer on an opposite wall, they may be reflected by thereflective layer 1008, and from there, back into the first photovoltaiclayer.

Some of the photons reflected by the reflective layer may not beabsorbed by the first photovoltaic layer, either, and may enter theoptical amplification medium that may be provided directly after thefirst photovoltaic layer. While in the optical amplification medium,they may be distributed around the capsule such as may be desired, atwhich point the photons may enter the second photovoltaic cell 1010.Photons not absorbed by the second cell may be reflected off of theouter reflective coating, and so forth 1012.

(Different arrangements may be contemplated in certain other exemplaryembodiments. For example, there may be a different arrangement of thelayers such that only one photovoltaic cell is provided, which may be onone side of the optical amplification medium.)

The operator of this device may then be able to harvest some or all ofthe power from the device such as is necessary. Photovoltaic electriccharge that is produced by the photons being absorbed by thephotovoltaic layer may be used to re-emit photons from the capsule LEDsto which the photovoltaic layers may be connected, or may be siphonedoff in order to power some other device 1014. This may be done based onneed, as controlled by the control board that may be provided externalto the capsule.

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 11, FIG. 11 displays an exemplaryembodiment of a photonic energy storage device configured as a “powersheet” 1100, whereby the “power sheet” 1100 has an optical amplificationlayer with integrated LED wafers 306, at least one photovoltaic cell304, and a reflective coating 302 provided on at least one side. Such a“power sheet” 1100 may be used to provide a flat, low-profile powerstorage system, which may be used to power certain low-poweredelectronics, such as display devices. This may allow the resultingdisplay device to be very thin, so long as it generally has a low powerconsumption when the device is away from a charging location so that asmaller number of layers can be used for energy storage. For example,this may allow for the use of display devices for certain applicationslike smart ID cards that selectively display some information, “smartpaper” flexible screens provided with a flexible photonic energy storagedevice backing, and so forth. Alternatively, a higher number of layerscan be added in order to increase energy storage. In other cases, “powersheets” 1100 may be used for other applications even when a particularlythin energy storage solution is not necessary.

For example, in one exemplary embodiment, a cell phone may have various“power sheets” 1100 or “power layers” which may be provided along with abattery and/or a supercapacitor, with these “power sheets” 1100 beingprovided on the back of the cell phone body and routed to the internalbattery or supercapacitor inside the phone. (In various embodiments,such sheets may be used in a variety of basic low-powered electronics,from small “smart devices” up to televisions.)

Turning now to exemplary FIG. 12, FIG. 12 depicts an exemplaryembodiment of a photonic energy storage device 1200 configured as anenergy storage device for a vehicle or another device that consumes amore substantial amount of power than a low-powered electronic devicesuch as has been previously discussed.

For example, according to an exemplary embodiment, a photonic energystorage system 1200 for a vehicle or other such device may have a clearcylindrical vacuum chamber 1204 with a number of layered cores 302, 304,306 corresponding to the layers provided in the capsule design or inother exemplary embodiments. In some exemplary embodiments, layers maybe of any thickness, such that hundreds or even thousands of layers maybe contemplated to be present. (It may be contemplated that these layersmay be much thinner than the layers depicted in FIG. 12, and that, inFIG. 12, these layers are not to scale, having been made much thicker toenhance visibility.)

For example, in an exemplary embodiment, a reflective coating 302 may beatomically structured in order to reflect most of the utilizedmonochromatic light of the pump sources over the applicable bandgap,which may reflect light into a slightly thickerhigh-absorption-efficiency photovoltaic cell. A lasing medium 306 mayalso be provided, which may in some exemplary embodiments have an LEDwafer integrated into the lasing medium layers 306. (In an exemplaryembodiment, the emissions of an LED wafer provided in the lasing mediumor optical amplification layers 3306 may be controlled to flash at aparticular frequency, based on a particular algorithmic sequence thatmay be predetermined to assist in maintaining thermal equilibrium andutilizing the lasing medium's luminescence properties.) This lasingmedium 306 may be, for example, any medium such as ruby or anycrystalline structure capable of solid state optical amplification andcapable of inducing stimulated emission, and may be provided in thinlayers that may have a thickness similar to that of thehigh-absorption-efficiency photovoltaic cell layers 304.

In the center of the layered cores 302, 304, 306 may be provided a hole,which may function as a storage location for a supercapacitor 1202,which may be run through the core in order to store harvested energy.This supercapacitor 1202 may also be used for routing the harvestedenergy from the layered cores and to some other device, such as may bedesired.

Such a system as is contemplated in FIG. 12 may be used in an electricvehicle, for example as a power storage unit that can easily be swappedin and out of the vehicle and which does not suffer from degradation atthe same rate that the vehicle's battery might suffer from degradation.However, various other uses may be contemplated for such a system, otherthan as a quickly and easily replaceable component of an electric car.For example, it may be contemplated that in many cases, certain batterytechnologies (such as lithium-ion) may pose unacceptable hazards, suchas a risk of explosion or fire, which it may be desirable to mitigate.The exemplary embodiment depicted in FIG. 12 may offer a less reactivepower storage solution that does not present such risks.

The foregoing description and accompanying figures illustrate theprinciples, preferred embodiments and modes of operation of theinvention. However, the invention should not be construed as beinglimited to the particular embodiments discussed above. Additionalvariations of the embodiments discussed above will be appreciated bythose skilled in the art (for example, features associated with certainconfigurations of the invention may instead be associated with any otherconfigurations of the invention, as desired). For example, theintegration of LED wafers into laser optical amplification mediums ascontemplated by the present application may itself represent anexemplary embodiment of the invention, as this may represent a moreefficient pumping method than traditional external pumping sources,which may act to decrease losses and increase amplification performance.

Therefore, the above-described embodiments should be regarded asillustrative rather than restrictive. Accordingly, it should beappreciated that variations to those embodiments can be made by thoseskilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention asdefined by the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A photonic energy storage device, comprising: astorage device body, the storage device body surrounding a sealedenvironment in which is provided a set of at least three thin layers ofreactive material, the set of layers comprising: a plurality ofreflective coatings; a plurality of photovoltaic layers each coupled toone of the plurality of reflective coatings; and a plurality of opticalamplification layers each coupled to one of the plurality ofphotovoltaic layers; wherein the plurality of reflective coatings, theplurality of photovoltaic cell layers, and the plurality of opticalamplification layers are arranged in a pattern whereby every secondelement in the pattern is a photovoltaic cell layer; and at least oneintegrated LED wafer comprising one or more LEDs disposed in a firstdirection from the plurality of optical amplification layers, configuredto direct light emitted by the one or more LEDs of the integrated LEDwafer against at least one of the plurality of reflective coatings. 2.The photonic energy storage device of claim 1, further comprising aplurality of thin layers of reactive material that each have a thicknessless than or equal to 80 microns.
 3. The photonic energy storage deviceof claim 1, further comprising a control board housed externally to thestorage device body and connected to the at least one integrated LEDwafer and the plurality of photovoltaic layers.
 4. The photonic energystorage device of claim 3, further comprising at least onesupercapacitor electrically connected to the at least one control board,and the at least one control board is configured to supply power betweenthe supercapacitor and the at least one integrated LED wafer and theplurality of photovoltaic layers based on an on-off state of thephotonic energy storage device.
 5. The photonic energy storage device ofclaim 1, wherein the storage device body has a reflective inner surfacedisposed outwards from the internal wall.
 6. The photonic energy storagedevice of claim 5, wherein the reflective inner surface of the storagedevice body comprises polished aluminum.
 7. The photonic energy storagedevice of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of opticalamplification layers comprises at least one of ruby, emerald, orneodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet.
 8. The photonic energy storagedevice of claim 1, wherein the one or more LEDs of the LED wafer have awavelength emission peak within the range of 694.3 nm to 700 nm.
 9. Thephotonic energy storage device of claim 1, wherein the photovoltaiclayer comprises at least one layer of multi-junction gallium arsenidephotovoltaic cells.
 10. The photonic energy storage device of claim 1,further comprising an enclosure, the enclosure comprising one or morewalls configured to surround the photonic energy storage device, one ormore supports disposed between the one or more walls of the enclosureand the photonic energy storage device, and at least one cooling unitconfigured to cool an internal environment of the enclosure between theone or more walls of the enclosure and the photonic energy storagedevice.
 11. The photonic energy storage device of claim 10, wherein thecooling unit comprises a fan embedded in one face of the photonic energystorage device.
 12. The photonic energy storage device of claim 10,wherein the cooling unit comprises a liquid cooling apparatus.
 13. Thephotonic energy storage device of claim 1, further comprising a displayoperationally connected to the storage device body and configured todraw power from the storage device body.
 14. The photonic energy storagedevice of claim 13, wherein each of the plurality of reflectivecoatings, the plurality of photovoltaic layers, and the plurality ofoptical amplification layers are provided as a circular disc with acentral hole.
 15. The photonic energy storage device of claim 1, whereinthe plurality of reflective coatings, the plurality of photovoltaiclayers, and the plurality of optical amplification layers are eachconcentrically disposed around a supercapacitor.